The surfaces of work pieces, such as surfaces of components of an aircraft, are often provided with tool markings during manufacturing and/or assembly. These tool markings may serve as guides for further tooling, such as the drilling of holes and the placement of fasteners. A commonly used tool for the marking of work pieces is a center punch. The center punch is generally a hard metal rod with a sharpened tip for making impressions into the surface of the work piece. Additionally, prior to using a center punch, a work piece may be initially scribed with non-penetrative preliminary markings (e.g., ink or pencil-based markings).
Existing center punches have been cumbersome and difficult to use. In one example, a center punch guide that removably holds the center punch may be positioned by an operator at a desired location on the work piece according to the preliminary markings. The center punch guide may be positioned relative to the preliminary markings with the use of an optical center finder component that is temporarily installed into the guide to replace the center punch. The optical center finder component may enable the operator to observe the preliminary markings and maneuver the center punch guide into the desired location on the work piece surface. Once the guide is maneuvered to the desired location, the optical center finder component may be disassembled from the guide and replaced with the center punch for making the tool marking. The center punch may then be propelled with a blunt force into the surface of the work piece by the operator, thereby making the needed tool marking. Assembly and disassembly of the center punch, the center punch guide, and the optical center finder component during positioning and use may result in loss or misplacement of the components, leading to inefficiency and additional replacement cost. Additionally, it is often difficult to view preliminary markings through the optical center finder, particularly in low light conditions.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have an apparatus and a method that overcomes one or more of the issues described above.